Section 4: Human Performance Technology

Problem:  Several instructors teaching the same course. The instructors live in different parts of the country (one lives in Canada). The instructional institution wants the course content to be the same across the board so that all students taking the class will receive the same learning experience regardless of whom they have as an instructor. Tools that can be used to solve the problem would be online chats, video conferencing and email communications between instructors. Through communications, a “shell” course can be designed to which all instructors have access. Design features can be divided among the instructors who submit the finished product to the “shell” course. Once the “shell” course is set up, it can be copied to each individual instructor’s site for individual enhancements, not to include coursework. The “shell” course can be saved and updated as needed for future classes, helping to maintain the “likeness” of classes taught.

After researching several definitions for EPSS, I have chosen William Bezanson’s (a former Nortel Networks executive) definition:

A performance support system provides just-in-time, just enough training, information, tools, and help for users of a product or work environment, to enable optimum performance by those users when and where needed, thereby also enhancing the performance of the overall business.

I like how Bezanson includes the “just enough training”, and “enhancing the performance of the overall business” into his definition.  The “just enough training” indicates that the user receives just what they need to complete the work at hand; thereby, reducing time on unnecessary training and increasing production time. Thus, “enhancing the performance of the overall business” is achieved.

I believe that the investment of time and resistance of the “non-computer” aged worker are the reasons that electronic performance support systems have not become widely used. As an employee who did not grow up with computers in the classroom or at home, I know that I tend to resist changes, especially computer related changes, due to my lack of knowledge of the computer. However, as my generation retires, I see EPSS becoming more prevalent with the younger generations who have indeed grown up with the computer being used in practically every facet of their lives. The investment of time is another area that I see has a deterrent to widely used EPSS. The up-front time it takes to decide what each employee may need to complete their job and then designing the “aids” to train them on each tasks would be extremely time consuming. Likewise, the time put into the continual monitoring and updating of training aids could quite possibly be an unending process.  However, over the long-haul, I do believe that electronic performance support systems will become more prevalent in the world of work as business looks for ways to train employees in a quick and efficient manner.

Technology application upgrades/changes with a small window of opportunity to learn the new application is a problem for which blended learning and knowledge management could be a solution. A former employer changed the interface application we used to present our online classes. As instructors we had the summer months to learn the new application and reconfigure our classes to conform to the new application. While a few onsite classes were offered and one-on-one mentoring was available, there were no manuals or online resources for us as we worked through the learning process.  For many of us who did not work near a campus, to have had an on-line resource where we could go to gain insight into how a feature of the application worked would have enhanced the in-class learning and would have been very beneficial in transferring the onsite classroom learning to real-time class preparation.

During the past year when I moved from teaching at the college level to the high school level I found myself in a variety of informal learning environments as I pursued my teaching certification. Some days found me at the library submerged in textbooks preparing for the PPR exam; while other days found me online taking short-term continuing education classes to refresh my memory on management and accounting concepts I had forgotten. Email correspondence with former colleagues who had taken the exams; as well as, professionals from the TEA helped me to focus my educational pursuits. The experience has been challenging, but worthwhile.  While my role has mainly been that of student, I find that as a secondary role, I am teaching my children that education never stops, no matter what your age.

Section 3: Evaluating, Implementing and Managing Instructional Programs and Projects

Two additional system-based models are the IPO Model (Busnell, 1990) and the Model of the Transfer Process (Balwin and Ford, 1988) as referenced to in an abstract by Deniz Eservel, “Approaches to Evaluation of Training: Theory & amp; Practice”; and Evaluation in Organizations: a systematic approach to enhanced learning by Darlene F. Russ-Eft. 

The IPO (Input, Process, Output/Outcome) Model begins with the Input stage. The input stage takes into consideration factors that will affect the training process such as materials, equipment, facilities, and qualifications of both the trainee and trainer. In the process stage, after much planning and designing, the training is provided to the trainees. The results of the training are then categorized as either output or outcome. Output is considered as “short-term benefit” while outcome is considered as “long-term results”. The output/outcome results then feed back into the input stage and the cycle begins again. 

Baldwin and Ford’s (1988) Model of the Transfer Process is broken down into three stages: (1) Training input, (2) Training output, (3) Condition of transfer. Each of these stages are made up of individual factors such as the trainee’s abilities, personality and motivation (input); the design and delivery of training (output); and what was learned and how it was utilized on the job (transfer).

Both the IPO Model and Model of Transfer Process would be very beneficial in evaluating the training of a new software program. The trainee’s background in working with similar software programs would be an important input. The design and presentation of the program would need to be tailored around the trainee’s previous experience. Assuming the company the trainee works for is implementing the software, output would be immediate and job performance enhanced. Over the long run, outcome would be improved through productivity of the trainee.

Although not a new innovation, the Go Green campaign of recent years has inspired the use of the reusable shopping bag. The relative advantage of the reusable shopping bag is in the decrease of pollution from the production of plastic bags; as well as, the reduction of plastic bags which ends up in our landfills, or worse, as litter. With regards to compatibility, many different types of bags, made from a variety of materials can used as reusable shopping bags and are just as reliable, if not better, at carrying items previously toted in plastic bags. There is nothing complex about a shopping bag, other than remembering to bring it with you when you go shopping. Most stores now offer reusable shopping bags at an inexpensive price at the check-out counter for patrons wishing to try and or switch from plastic bags and for those who may have forgotten to bring a reusable bag. Observable benefits of the reusable shopping bag are the reduction of waste and oil consumption to make plastic bags. According to the Reusable Bags Depot,

 An EPA ranking of chemicals that produce the most hazardous waste showed 5 of the top 6 were used by the plastics industry; and, an estimated 12 million barrels of oil is required to produce the plastic bags used in the US each year.( http://www.reusablebagsdepot.com/reusable-bag-benefits.html)

The reusable shopping bag is not complex and is highly compatible to the plastic bag. Therefore, the only thing hindering the adoption of wide-spread use of the reusable shopping bags is people’s willingness to adopt them.  

As the project manager assigned to develop a series of professional development sessions focusing on technology use in the classroom for teachers, I would first assemble a team that had experience at all levels of education from K-12. After meeting to discuss what needs teachers had in the way of professional development focusing on technology we would construct a plan of action to detail the series of sessions. As sessions are developed and delivered, the team would gain confidence and knowledge for future session developments. Feedback from session participants would had fuel to future development and the team would continue to create and present timely technologically relevant sessions.

Section 2: Theories and Models of Learning and Instruction.

For someone who has a goal to learn the parts of a business letter, the two learning theories in Chapter 4 that I would incorporate would be Situated Learning Theory and Cognitive Information Processing Theory.  With the Situated Learning Theory, students would be given assignments/activities to complete. Each new assignment would incorporate new features/letter parts while re-enforcing previously learned letter parts. The assignments and activities would need to be simulated as close to real business documents as possible. Once mastered, the student would be able to produce a letter in the proper format with proper letter parts and placement. With the Cognitive Information Processing Theory, stimuli would be documents for the student to complete that incorporated letter parts, starting from simple to complex. The short term memory system would be enhanced with practice of the features in a variety of related documents that would help to commit what was learned to long term memory; such as a modified block style letter with multiple addressees or a block style letter with a subject line. Through repeated practice of the different parts of a letter used in different letter styles, the student would be able to commit the parts and styles to long term memory.

Using Gagne’s Nine events published by the G. Raymond Change School of Continuing Education (http://de.ryerson.ca/portals/de/assets/resources/Gagne%27s_Nine_Events.pdf), Ihave compared and contrasted Gagne’s Nine events with the First Principles below. 

 

The steps I would follow in applying each of the First Principles to my goal of teaching the parts of a business letter, would be as follow:  Problem centered.  Discuss the parts of a letter and show how they are placed (formatted) to form a proper business letter. Explain that some parts of standard and others are used on an as needed basis.  Activation.  Basic parts of a business letter can be related to personal letters that students may have written, such as the date line, saluation, body, and closing. These parts create the foundation of the letter and a building structure for the business letter. From here, additional parts of business letters can be introduced and their placement explained. Demonstration. Use a variety of examples, such as a letter of application, collections letter, client letter, sales letter, etc.  With each example, highlight the body parts and their location within the letter. Application. Students are given a packet of letters to produce. The first letter would be simple with only the basic body parts introduced. As students progress through the packet, the letters would become more complicated, using letter parts that vary from letter to letter. These letters would be submitted for a performance evaluation and feedback provided to student. Integration. The capstone assignment would be for student to create and produce a letter of application.

As a business teacher, the whole-task approach in embraced in preparing for students for the workforce. Teaching students the parts of a letter and their proper placement within the letter needs to be taught in such a way that students can produce a proper business letter in any business setting. In order for students to become experts at producing a letter they need to know the different parts of the letter and understand when those parts may or may not be used. Complex skills will be refined as they practice producing letters with varying letter parts. At first they will be told which letter parts need to be included, but as training progresses, they will need to determine letter parts that may need to be added based on the content of the letter, i.e. Enclosure. If the Scaffolding approach was to be used, a teacher could begin by breaking a business letter down into its parts and discussing the purpose and placement of those parts. Then students could begin with producing letters that contained only the basic parts. As they became proficient with producing these basic letters, additional letter parts could be introduced and incorporated into the production of future assignments. In using the Mathemagenic method for teaching the parts of a letter and their proper placement, a teach would, again, start with a basic letter, one that contains the parts of any and all business letters. Practice producing these types of basic letters would provide the student with the recurrent constituent skills necessary to produce a letter in any business setting. Once mastered, students could be introduced to other letter parts that vary from letter to letter. Explaining to the students when and how these letter parts are used and with practice in determining whether or not these additional letter parts may or may not be needed for a particular letter, students will gain the necessary nonrecurrent constituent skills.

To motive and enhance learning of the proper format of a letter, I would do the following:

Attention
Perceptual Arousal:	For the purposes of this learning objective (proper format of a letter) we will be writing a letter of application for the job of their choice.
Inquire Arousal:	Ask around for examples of jobs that students may want to write a letter of application.
Variability:	Student input, example letters
Relevance
Goal Orientation:	Start with the basic parts of the letter (i.e., dateline, address, salutation, body, and closing).
Motive Matching:	As basic letter parts become familiar, add new letter parts for practice.
Familiarity:	Have students produce letters they might receive themselves (i.e., letters for credit, collection letters, employment letters, etc.)
Confidence
Learning Requirements:	Immediate feed-back on completed letters.
Success Opportunities:	As students learn the parts of a letter and how to format a letter, they will be able to produce a business letter in any environment.
Personal Control:	When they can produce a correctly formatted letter without an example or template.
Satisfaction
Intrinsic Reinforcement:	Let students compose and produce a letter of application for a job of their choice (real or not).
Extrinsic Rewards:	Positive feed-back on their work.
Equity:	Positive feed-back.

I feel the major benefit of engaging in design research is the repeated evaluation and feed-back of student progress at the end of each macrocycle followed by a new set of learning tasks for the next macrocycle. This approach to learning would allow for students to be evaluated regularly for task proficiency with constructive feed back on their progress. Once the evaluation is complete a new set of tasks for the next macrocycle can be designed based on what was accomplished. This would allow students to progress through the coursework in a productive way making sure the foundational learning took place before higher-level learning was introduced.